OET Writing is a selection test — select, don’t copy
The case notes always contain more than the reader needs, and at least one fact the reader cannot safely be without. Your letter is scored on which facts you chose.
Write for the reader, not the notes
Before writing a word, answer one question: what must this reader be able to DO after reading? A community nurse taking over wound care needs the regimen and the red flags — not the ward's daily observations. An aged-care nurse meeting the patient for the first time needs function, cognition and risks — not the operation timeline. Every fact in the notes either helps your reader act, or costs you marks under Conciseness.
The safety-critical facts
Hidden in most OET case notes is a fact with teeth — an allergy, a risk, a red flag. Omitting three minor details costs less than omitting that one. Run a “what could hurt the patient if the reader doesn't know it?” pass first, and put those facts in early.
Notes: “ALLERGY: penicillin” — a strong letter never lets that die in the notes. “Please note that she is allergic to penicillin.”
Transform, never transplant
Note fragments must become full sentences — copying “falls ×2, mobility ↓” verbatim costs Conciseness & Clarity and Language marks. Write: “She has fallen twice this month and her mobility has declined.” Expand every abbreviation the first time you use it.
A word budget that works
180–200 body words (the address and salutation don't count):
- Purpose + patient — ≈ 25 words, first sentence, unmissable
- Relevant history and course, synthesised — ≈ 70 words
- Current status + what you're asking the reader to do — ≈ 80 words
- Close — ≈ 20 words
Over budget? Cut history detail. Never cut the requests.
The conventions that are free marks
- Named recipient → “Dear Dr Stone” and “Yours sincerely”. Unnamed role → “Dear Sir/Madam” and “Yours faithfully”.
- Sign with your role, not a personal name.
- One idea per paragraph; formal but plain register; no contractions.
OEZ scores every letter on the six official criteria and — the part candidates say changes everything — checks your content fact by fact against the notes, so you can see exactly which selection decisions cost you. See how the writing practice works, or try a letter free.
Practise this on OEZ — start freeFull speaking role-plays with an AI patient, timed writing tasks, and marking modelled on OET’s published criteria. No card needed.